Everything and more about gardening in Shady's SE Iowa (USA) location.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Challenge: Countdown to Christmas! "I"

The Letter I.

I for Invincible, Irascible Iris?

Nope!

Perhaps an Iris Wannabe?

Nope!

Better than an Iris, that being my "Impartial" Impression.

:-)

Let me introduce

Belamcanda chinensis!

Petite-ly beautiful, Belamcanda chinensis flowers are

around 1 1/2" in diameter. But look at those striking colors!

Blackberry Lily (common name)

Belamcanda chinensis is an interesting plant, growing best in sun or part sun.

In Spring, it begins growth much like an iris.
However, the foot-long or so leaves form along the two-foot long stems.
It's a member of the lily family, is hardy in zones 5 through 10, and a native of China.

(This photo was taken in 2009. I first planted these in a Very shady spot.

Consequently, the plant didn't grow as sturdily as it should, but it did bloom nicely.

I left the clump here, but have begun others elsewhere - in sunnier locations!)

"Bella" as the flowers roll their petals tightly and not long afterwards,

the seed pods are formed.

"Bella" because

after the seed pods dry, they split open and little dark (inedible) "fruits" appear -

looking much like blackberries (hence the name). The seeds are contained within,

and may be harvested for propagation.

Again, they are "bella"as the Fall foliage turns strikingly golden in the sunlight.

(This was not a sunny morning.)

So. I now Implicate the Blackberry Lily as being Implicitly Important!

:-)

The contents of this post are the property of http://yardisgreen.blogspot.com.

4 comments:

I love blackberry lilies! But I have had no luck growing them--I must be the only person I know who can't seem to get them started. Last year I planted some seed and was happy to see some starts in the spring, but as the season progressed I realized they were actually some miniature iris:) I'm not giving up, though!

I haven't had much time to blog lately, so I completely missed your "Countdown to Christmas." What a clever idea!

Thanks for the offer of the seeds, Shady, but I think I still have some left over. I've done some winter sowing in the past, but have never tried to start the blackberry lilies that way. Great suggestion--I'll try that this winter!